The killing of George Floyd by police in Minnesota has sparked a cascade of responses in America, starting with massive protests against police brutality and a renewed effort for civil rights for Black and Brown people in the United States. One of those major efforts is seeing police actually prosecuted for their wrongdoings, starting with the man who killed Floyd and the officers who did nothing (while Floyd had a knee on his neck for nearly nine minutes).
The man in charge of that case is Minnesota attorney general Keith Ellison, who many have publicly pleaded with to convict the officers to the fullest of his abilities. Hasan Minhaj did just that on Patriot Act earlier this month, directly addressing the prosecutor because, in his words, he knew he was watching the show.
And it turns out he was, which is why (on Friday) Netflix released a full interview between the two from the Minnesota AG’s office about the case and the Second Civil Rights Movement in America. The video begins with Minhaj’s initial plea and a brief explanation of what happened: Ellison and his wife were watching the show, which he says he’s a big fan of, and he was shocked when the comedian directly addressed him. It was his wife and a number of other people who reached out to Minhaj at Ellison’s request that apparently made it all happen.
With that out of the way Minhaj starts hot, asking directly if the police are going to jail for “40 years or more” for killing Floyd.
“I don’t know,” Ellison said. “And I can’t say.”
From there, though, they talk about the complexities of the case, including Ellison’s decision to file increased charges against Derek Chauvin and the other three officers. The half-hour interview also covers Ellison’s personal experience with police brutality as a Black man in America and his perspective on pleas for police reform from U.S. protesters. The episode is intense, as are the circumstances in the highly public case that will be watched worldwide as it moves forward. But it’s as much insight as we’ve seen into what’s become the biggest murder case in America and a symbolic measure of justice in a world that’s hopefully changing for the better.